Point of Care Testing

To ensure that all Point of Care Testing (POCT) devices used within the NHS Lothian system are well managed and produce good quality, accurate results, which are used to aid patient care.

The benefits to the organisation will include the medico-legal advantage of working within a system-wide Procedure as well as access to Standard Operating Procedures (SOP), Operational Framework, Training Packs, potential savings on purchase price and maintenance of POCT devices. The Procedure is produced using recommendations from the documents Medical Device Agency (MDA) February 2010 and Guidelines on point-of-care testing, The Royal College of Pathologists, 2004.

POCT devices must only be purchased after a case for clinical need has been approved by the POCT committee

• 1. A designated, POCT manager will take responsibility for providing advice on the purchase of devices, training, maintaining and monitoring the quality of these services.
  2. There must be close liaison between users, POCT manager and the POCT committee on all issues relating to POCT.
  3. All staff who use POCT must be authorised, trained and have a valid certificate of competence for that specific device.
  4. POCT which fails to meet the requirements of this policy will be suspended by NHS Lothian until compliance can be demonstrated.